Authorities reported Saturday that more than 1,000 people were killed in Morocco’s biggest earthquake in decades, which also left extensive damage and panicked locals and visitors running for cover in the middle of the night.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake occurred at 11:11 pm (2211 GMT) on Friday in a hilly region 72 kilometers (45 miles) southwest of Marrakech, a popular tourist destination, according to the US Geological Survey.
The coastal cities of Rabat, Casablanca, and Essaouira also experienced strong tremors.
“I was nearly asleep when I heard the doors and the shutters banging,” said Ghannou Najem, a Casablanca resident in her 80s who was visiting Marrakesh when the quake hit.
“I went outside in a panic. I thought I was going to die alone.”
It is the strongest-ever quake to hit the North African kingdom, and one expert described it as the region’s “biggest in more than 120 years”.
“Where destructive earthquakes are rare, buildings are simply not constructed robustly enough… so many collapse, resulting in high casualties,” said Bill McGuire, professor emeritus at Britain’s University College London.
Updated interior ministry figures on Saturday showed the quake killed at least 1,037 people, the vast majority in Al-Haouz, the epicentre, and Taroudant provinces.
Another 1,204 people were injured, including 721 in a critical condition, the ministry said.
The ministry also recorded deaths in Ouarzazate, Chichaoua, Azilal and Youssoufia provinces, as well as in Marrakesh, Agadir and the Casablanca area.
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